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Sept 4, 2001
BY JIM THOMAS Journal Sports Editor Bloomfield 17, Cortez 7 Momentum can change so quickly. One moment a team is dominating the other and the next moment the other team is outplaying the other one. That was pretty much the case Friday night, Aug. 30, as the Panthers fell in its 2001 varsity football season opener to the Bobcats from Bloomfield High School at Panther Field. Early in the game it looked like almost a repeat of last year which the Bobcats won 7-0 in Bloomfield. Neither team could get much going. The Panthers went three plays and out their first possession. Bloomfield held the ball a couple more downs on its first time with the ball and looked like it was heading for a touchdown when MCHS got the first break of the game as Richard Yake intercepted a pass at the goal line. Momentum had made a change but the Panthers could not capitalize. The Panthers moved the ball up field to the 15-yard line but were forced to punt. Bloomfield went three and out and MCHS picked up a first down but that was about it. The first quarter ended with no scores on the board. An interception, though, early in the second by Mike Rivas gave the Panthers the ball at their own 18. Momentum was still on MCHS’ side. Panther quarterback Kevin Wayman called his own number several times and on a bootleg rambled 33 yards for a first down at the 43. He kept calling his own number and got the ball to the Bloomfield 43. Stephon Lobato took the ball on a pitch for a nice advance. At the B32, Wayman found Rivas down field. Rivas, going up against a Bloomfield defender, got the ball away and then escaped from him and zipped in for a touchdown with 7:57 left in the quarter. Colin Tansey booted the ball through the upright for the point-after and a 7-0 MCHS lead. The Panthers got their hands on the ball one more time and moved it to the B21 from their own 33 but turned the ball over on downs. Bloomfield took the opening kickoff of the second half and kept the ball most of the quarter. The Bobcats, starting on their own 26, moved the ball well. BHS quarterback Alex Cummins made several nice passes out into the flat. Bryan Sandoval, a big runningback, made several long runs on slants, sweeps, and pitches. The Bobcats moved into MCHS territory and looked like they had scored when Michael Bryan made second, third, and fourth effort, dragging MCHS players along the way. However, a penalty called the TD back at the 8:48 mark. Facing a third down-and-four yards-to-go situation, Sandoval found a gap up and bolted up the middle 11 yards for a first down to the C19. Another long gain on a counter by Sandoval got the ball down to the 8. He took the ball again and zipped around the far side and scored with 6:43 to play. Cummins booted the PAT for a 7-7 score. Bloomfield now had the momentum. The Panthers got the ball back but a punt was blocked giving Bloomfield the ball at the C28. Momentum continued to be on Bloomfield’s side. But the Panther defense stiffened and did not allow them to move the ball. The Panthers got the ball back but couldn’t do anything with it. Bloomfield got the ball but the quarter expired with it at their C43. BHS worked the ball down to the C14 when Yake stepped in front for an interception. He broke a couple tackles and then outran the BHS defenders for an apparent TD. It was called back on a clip. But MCHS had the momentum but it was brief. The Panthers had the ball on their own 13 and moved the up to the 18 but Wayman threw an interception at the C33. BHS capitalized on the mistake although the Bobcats managed only a field goal from the 24-yard by Cummins with 6:49 showing. Momentum was on the side of the Panthers again following a good return by Levi Hill. But it didn’t last long as another interception was made by BHS. The Bobcats turned that into a score when Sandoval raced 58 yards untouched. Cummins booted the PAT for a 17-7 score with 3:16 to go. MCHS got the ball again but a forced pass went for an interception. The Bobcats ran out the clock for the win. The Panthers visit New Mexico Class 4A state runnerup Piedra Vista at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 8, at Farmington Municipal Schools Stadium on the campus for Farmington High School. Dove Creek 43, Whitehorse 0 Earlier in the day on Friday, Dolores County opened the season on a positive note by thumping a good Whitehorse team at Weber Park Field in Dove Creek. "We sure did make a lot of mistakes," DCHS head coach Ken Soper said following the game. "We are improving slowly, too slow for me. But I thought that with so many veterans coming back that we would be further along than what we are right now. Practice-wise, we haven’t been catching on like I think we should be. We are definitely not where I expected we would be." The Bulldogs took the opening kickoff at their own 29 and scored with a field goal 14 plays later. DCHS quarterback Keith Pierce made several nice passes, one for a 20-yard gain by Dallas Coker. Big fullback Bru Meyer bulled his way for several years on various carries. The Bulldogs got into the red zone and suddenly had problems. They worked the ball to the 10 but then Pierce was sacked. They finally settled for a field goal when Coker booted the ball from 28 yards out with 6:19 to play. The DCHS defense was tough. The Raiders could not do much with the ball and gave it up on downs at the DC44. DCHS scored four plays later when Pierce hit Meyer coming out of the backfield from 26 yards out with 2:14 to go. Coker booted the PAT for a 10-0 lead. The Bulldogs got the ball late in the first quarter and moved the ball from the W44 to the W3, thanks to a 39-yard pass play to MCHS transfer Eddie Halper. Meyer got the call and bulled his way over from the 3 with 11:56 on the clock. Coker’s PAT attempt was no good. Whitehorse moved the ball a little, thanks to several DCHS penalties up to their own 43. Coker intercepted a pass. The Bulldogs then held on the to the ball from almost the rest of the quarter. Coker tried a 30-yard field goal but it was partially blocked. Whitehorse could not move the ball. Late in the period, DCHS got on the board again starting at the 35. Meyer carried for several long gains and Pierce made some nice passes for gains. Pierce found Coker for a TD from 5 yards out with 11 seconds left. Coker was true on the PAT for a 23-0 half-time lead. DCHS scored early in the third when DCHS blocked a punt. This gave the Bulldogs the ball at the W4. Meyer took the ball in from 2 yards out. The PAT was blocked but DCHS led 29-0. At 6:16 remaining in the third, the Bulldogs scored again when Pierce tossed to Meyer coming out of the backfield in a play that covered 30 yards. Coker hit the PAT for a 36-0 margin. On the Raiders’ next possession, Casey Spitzer intercepted a pass at the W25. Six plays later, Halper scored from the 1 at 2:42. Coker hit the PAT for the final 43-0 score. Whitehorse got the ball back but time expired on the team. "I saw some good things out there. A win is a win and that’s good because we will face a good team in Bayfield next week," Soper said. The Bulldogs host the Wolverines at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 8. Mancos 48, Ignacio 35 The Blue Jays rallied after being down twice in the game during the middle two quarters and then dominated the fourth for their first win of the season at home. "It was a great game for the fans," first-year Mancos High School head coach Gordon Shepherd said. "We came back twice — once in the second and once in the third — and then hung on in the fourth. We got great senior leadership as many of them made big plays. It was good way to open the season." Mancos led 10-8 after the first period. The Blue Jays scored on a 24-yard field by Travis Clark and a 21-yard run by Jakob Tallent. Clark booted the extra-point. Ignacio scored two TDs in the second and MHS scored a pair. Tallent accounted for both MHS scores, the first on a 96-yard kickoff return and the second on an 8-yard run. Both PATs were missed. The score was tied 22-all at the half. Both schools scored in the third, the first by the Bobcats and the second time by Mancos. Nick Rubino grabbed a 36-yard pass from MHS quarterback Kelley Smith and Clark hit the extra-point. MHS put the ball across the end zone line when tight end Ryan Shepherd took a 1-yard pass from Smith. A big play on the night came when Rubino made a 66-yad pass interception return for a TD. Both two-point conversion tries were missed. The Blue Jays accounted finished with 447 yards in total offense. Smith passed for 170 on 14-25. Rubino made two passes for 36 and Scott Hallam another for 14. They rushed for 227 yards. Tallent carried eight times for 91, Rubino 21 times for 79, and Smith bootlegged eight times for 60. Defensively, Clark and Scott Koppenhafer made 11 tackles each. Clark also intercepted two passes, Rubino and Kent Russell both picked off one each. Ignacio High School quarterback Chris Phillips opened his season with four touchdown passes against Mancos. Phillips found Lorenzo Rodriguez for three touchdowns, and tight end Laramy Miller grabbed one. Ben Neil scored the Bobcats lone rushing touchdown. The Blue Jays visit always-tough Sargent at 1 p.m. Saturday. Pagosa Springs 42, Dolores 26 No information was available at press time on Labor Day. The Bears host MCHS JVs at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 7, at Dolores Field. |
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